History of Hillsdale Part III

Borough of Hillsdale – 1923-1946

 

HILLSDALE – During the year 1922, the Civic Association, after canvassing the will of the residents, presented a petition to the Township Committee expressing the opinion that the community had outgrown the township form of government. As a result, the State Legislature passed an act on March 2, 1923, incorporating the Borough of Hillsdale. The residents ratified the legislature’s action in a referendum held April 24, 1923. The first Mayor and Council were elected November 12, 1923, and took office the same day, with Henry J. Werner as Mayor.

The principal officials in the first borough family were: Councilmen G. Graf; W.W. Livengood; Frank Scott; M. Taradash; Harvey E. Hering; C.A. Lorentz; Collector-Treasurer, George W. Saul; Clerk, George M. Yates; Borough Engineer, H.G. Hering Jr.; and Assessor, John W. Kinmouth. Garrett A. Storms served a long tenure as Borough Clerk, from 1926 through 1950. George W. Babcock served as Borough Attorney from 1922 until his death in 1945. The first borough board to be appointed was the Board of Health, formed in November, 1923, with Ralph H. Stever as chairman.

 

It took more than 20 years to fill out the borough’s present operating boards: the Planning Board organized on Nov. 9, 1927, with W.W. Livengood, Chairman; Zoning Board of Adjustment on July 23, 1929, with J.G. Hansen, Chairman; Shade Tree Commission in April 1931, with R. Lehman, Chairman; Municipal Assistance Commission on June 23, 1933, with William B. Terry, Chairman; Parks and Playgrounds Commission on July 16, 1945, with George Abelman, Chairman. The first borough meeting hall was in Fireman’s Hall until December 4, 1923 when the council met in the old school building on Magnolia Avenue. The first council meeting was held in the present borough hall on Dec. 11, 1928.

 

COMMUNITY SERVICES ARE EXPANDED

 

During the two decades between 1923 and 1947, the new borough began to improve community services. The Patterson Street Bridge over the Pascack Brook was built by the county in 1925. Additional homes began to be constructed in the Washington Park Development in 1926, at the then Demarest Farm west of Broadway and Central Avenue. Streets in the Glenbrook Park Development were laid from 1926 through 1928. Axel Gustafson was appointed as the first assigned Road Department employee in 1925 with equipment consisting of a wheelbarrow and hand tools. William Diefenbach was named foreman of the department in March, 1929, and held the position for more than 20 years. The local Civic Association had undertaken the beautification of Memorial

Park up to the summer of 1925. The group was dissolved in July, 1925, and presented the borough a check for $231.50, its total bank account, requesting that the funds be used for beautification of local parks.

 

 

 

The first bus line serving Hillsdale went into operation Sept. 15, 1924, when Avolia Transportation Co. of Paterson ran a line from Hillsdale Station to Paterson, via Pascack Road and Hillsdale Ave. On Nov. 3, 1924, the Park Ridge Transportation Co. received a franchise to operate two buses through Hillsdale, via Broadway, between Pearl River, NY, and Westwood. In 1927, the Spring Valley Bus Co. began a run of five buses from Spring Valley to Jersey City, through Hillsdale. Rockland Coaches began their current runs from Spring Valley to New York in the 1940s. A.J. Tiedeman operated buses from Westwood to Ridgewood, via Hillsdale, and provided taxi service in Hillsdale beginning in 1921.

 

MODERN POLICE AND FIRE UNITS

 

Lawrence J. Foley was appointed the first regular Chief of Police with the adoption of a Police Ordinance on July 13, 1928. James A. Holland and William F. Bulach, who later served as chief, were appointed the first regular patrolmen. The Board of Trade donated the present kiosk police booth to the borough on Christmas Day 1925, and the first traffic lights were installed on Hillsdale Ave. and Broadway in July 1927. The first police patrol car was purchased in 1926 and the police headquarters was moved to its present site in Borough Hall in January 1931.

 

A Mack combination hook & ladder truck was purchased for the Fire Department in April 1926. This was replaced in 1941 by a Ward LaFrance Cities Service Truck, which saw about 15 years of service. A Sanford pumper and hose truck, purchased in March, 1929, was used for more than 20 years. A local fireman, Albert Westervelt, won first prize in a ladder-climbing contest on November 9, 1931, at the State Firemen’s Home in Boonton.

 

During the Depression, a Welfare Committee of the Hillsdale Fire Dept. was active from 1929 through 1932. The Pascack Valley Fireman’s Association was formed in 1924, with Hillsdale as a charter member. Oscar Bartalot served as president in 1948. The Ladies Auxiliary of the Fire Association was dissolved on May 12, 1924 and reorganized as the Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Exempt Firemen’s Association, with 37 members, and Mrs. W. Werkeiser as its first president. The present Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Fire Department was organized with 18 members; Mrs. Ann Farley is president.

 

The Fire Department erected and presented a World War II Honor Roll to the borough on Memorial Day, 1924, with Assistant Chief R.C. Appeld making the presentation. The roll was built by former Chief Charles Westphal and contained the names of 455 men and women who saw service, and 11 men who had given their lives for their country. The department maintained the roll in the park and later donated it to the American Legion Post, where it can be seen at the post quarters on Legion Drive.

 

 

 

 

 

SCHOOLS – LIBRARY – CHURCHES

 

In 1983, six classrooms and an 800-seat auditorium were added to the original 12-room school on Magnolia Avenue, which is now the George G. White School. High school students attended Park Ridge and Westwood high schools on a tuition basis, paid by the Hillsdale district.

 

A meeting of local citizens on June 16, 1935, laid the groundwork for a public library in Hillsdale, with Miss Sarah Vander Clute playing a leading role. A small store on the north side of Hillsdale Ave. was dedicated as the library on Jan. 20, 1936, with Judge Walter McIntyre presenting the keys to Mayor John G. Hansen. On Nov 3, 1936, Hillsdale voters made the Free Library a permanent institution, and the borough received a gift of 4500 books as a debt-free library on Jan. 1, 1937. In March 1938, the library moved across the street to the Leddy Building. The first librarian was Mrs. Ruth Newman, and Judge McIntyre was president of the trustees for many years.

 

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on Hillsdale Ave. became a self-sustaining parish in May 1945, with Rev. Richard Ashford as the first rector of the parish. Mrs. Helen Riley donated the land for the first St. John the Baptist Catholic Church, at that time a mission on the south side of Hillsdale Ave. Ground was broken on April 4, 1925, by Father O’Donnell and lay trustees Mayor Henry J. Werner and John T. Buckley. The church was dedicated on Dec. 13, 1925, with Father Cornelius A. Corcoran installed as first resident pastor on Oct. 14, 1927. Rev. Thomas J. Duffy was appointed pastor on June 1, 1945. He is presently Monsignor Duffy and pastor emeritus of the parish. The church sponsored Boy Scout Troop 91, which received a charter on May 1, 1944. The troop chairman was G. McAleer, assisted by William Kovac.

 

SCOUTS AND OTHER LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS

 

The Doubles Club of Hillsdale sponsored Boy Scout Troop 108, which was chartered with 12 boys in February 1945 under the leadership of J. Edward Lohman. Cub Pack 91, sponsored by the Holy Name Society of St. John the Baptist Church, was invested on Sept. 28, 1945, with 31 boys in six dens.

 

Mrs. John J. Merritt was captain of the first Girl Scout Troop, in 1924. The “Lily of the Valley” Troop was organized in 1927, with Mrs. William Bach as captain. The PTA and American Legion Post were instrumental in organizing many other Boy and Girl Scout troops over the next decade and they played a leading role in local activities during World War II. Three Brownie Scout troops were organized in 1939, by the Hillsdale PTA, with 54 girls.

 

LOCAL CLUBS AND CIVIC ORGANIZATIONS

 

In the two decades following 1920, Hillsdale saw the organization of a wide variety of clubs, civic organizations, and business groups, which played a large role in the community life of the town.

 

In 1925, the Hillsdale American Legion Post was reorganized and Kenneth Anderson was elected Commander. In 1929, the post was incorporated under the name of the General Leonard Wood Post 162. The property where the Legion Hut now stands, on Legion Place, was purchased in 1930 and Legionnaires constructed the present headquarters largely with donated labor and materials. The building was dedicated in 1932 as “Veterans Memorial Hall.”

 

The American Legion Auxiliary of Post 162 was granted a charter on July 1, 1927, with seven members and Mrs. Elenore Vogler as president. At a meeting at the home of Mrs. Paul Clerke, the Sun Dial Garden Club was organized with 28 members and Mrs. Clerke chosen as president. T.A. Weston was one of the leaders of the club, from 1929 until his death in 1946. The club did much to beautify local parks, stimulate gardening in the town, and planting trees along principal roadways. In 1931, the club donated the sun dial now in Memorial Park, and later a memorial to Mr. Weston.

 

The Hillsdale Branch of the Hackensack Hospital Auxiliary was formed in May 1935, at the home of Mrs. Garrett Broadhead. At the next meeting, she was elected president by the 15 members of the group. Mrs. Thomas Mullen served as president from 1937 through 1948. Under the sponsorship of the Hillsdale Methodist Church, The Young Doubles Club was organized by Rev. Earl Hampton. The club was non sectarian, with the aim of promoting Christian fellowship among the young married couples of Hillsdale. The club, which became The Doubles Club in 1946, sponsored Boy Scout Troop 108.

 

The Hillsdale Civic Association was incorporated on August 8, 1945, with 15 trustees and Frank D. Peters as president. The group met twice monthly, sponsored social events, published a newsletter mailed free to local residents, and installed “Welcome” signs at the principal road entrances to Hillsdale. In 1928, the Hillsdale Republican Club was organized as an outgrowth of the Second District Republican Club, which had been in existence for several years under the leadership of Clarence V. Shuttleworth. It pledged to maintain the principles of the Republican Party and to elect local officials who stood for “Good Government.”

 

Mrs. William B. Terry, president of the Hillsdale Parent-Teacher Association was instrumental in organizing the Hillsdale Recreation Committee in 1934, with 25 members. The committee was later sanctioned by the Mayor and Council, and Board of Education. Harry F. Gunther was chairman of the committee from 1934 to 1942 when it ceased to operate during the war years. In 1941, a program of serving lunches at the playgrounds during summer programs was instituted. Many of the recreation programs now carried on by the Hillsdale Recreation Commission were conceived by the original Recreation Committee.

From its earliest days, Hillsdale won a reputation as the home of outstanding athletic teams. The Hillsdale A.C. was known all over the county for its championship baseball teams. Later, the Hillsdale Saxons and teams sponsored by various business firms carried on the tradition of fielding winning teams.

 

THE BUSINESS LIFE OF THE COMMUNITY

 

The Business Association of Hillsdale was organized in the fall of 1932 and incorporated in June, 1933. Its first president was Lucien Meyer. Trustees were leading local businessmen: Milton A. Zabriskie, Ira Durie, William Gensheimer, Berthold Hemme, and Jay T. Fast. The association, which was the forerunner of the present Hillsdale Chamber of Commerce, was instrumental in obtaining better street lights for the business section and the widening of Broadway.

 

The Hillsdale National Bank, predecessor of the Pascack Valley Bank and Trust Company, was organized in 1926. The first Board of Directors consisted of John T. Buckley, Edward P. Davis, William W. Livengood, Charles A. Lorentz, Anton Maksche, Bernard T. Rafferty, John A. Schlotterbeck, Albert H. Storms, Henry J. Werner, and George M. Yates. In January 1927, W. Merle Hoffman was elected cashier, with Edward J. Hauck and Mrs. Claudine Davis as assistants. Deposits at the close of the first day of business totaled $52,064.83 in 110 accounts. Total resources were $101,919.83. Ten years later, on April 1, 1936, when the bank moved across Broadway to its first building at its present location, resources amounted to $667,971.46.

 

The first automobile agency in Hillsdale was opened in 1909, by Ira Durie. He sold Jackson cars at the corner of Piermont Avenue and Broadway. Durie took on the Oakland franchise in 1922 and was the Studebaker distributor from 1917 until the company went out of business in 1966. He also had an Oldsmobile agency from 1932 through 1940, and the Cadillac agency from 1936 to 1965. Prior to going out of business, the operation was run by Ira Durie Jr. and his son, Keith. A bank is now located on the Durie showroom site.